US embassy cable - 05OTTAWA1079

UNCLAS OTTAWA 001079 
 
SIPDIS 
 
KINSHASA PASS BRAZZAVILLE, YAOUNDE PASS BANGUI 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV, PREL, CA, CIDA 
SUBJECT: CANADIAN VIEWS ON THE CONGO BASIN FOREST 
PARTNERSHIP AND CONTINUING USG ROLE 
 
REF: STATE 51280 
 
1. Demarche requested in reftel was made to the Canadian 
International Development Agency (CIDA).  While Canadian 
officials were unable to respond on substance at the time of 
the demarche, they subsequently provided the following 
comments on the U.S. position. 
 
2. Text of Canadian Response 
 
We are very appreciative of the important role the U.S. 
Government has played in launching the Partnership and 
facilitating its first two years.  It is good to know that 
you plan to continue contributing to the Partnership.  We 
share your view that the CBFP is an informal forum for 
information sharing and coordination and is neither an 
implementation mechanism nor a sub-structure of COMIFAC.  We 
also agree that the CBFP should maintain as its principal 
reference point the COMIFAC Plan de Convergence, given the 
importance of country leadership in establishing priorities 
and the imperative of working towards a common agenda. 
Regretfully, we are not currently in a position to support 
your request for a view on the composition of the 
Consultative Committee, as Canada is not currently a Partner 
of the CBFP.  We continue to follow the evolution of the CBFP 
with great interest and hope to clarify our status over the 
coming months once we have greater certainty regarding the 
nature of our engagement in the forest sector in Central 
Africa over the coming years.  End Text. 
 
Visit Canada's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/ottawa 
 
DICKSON